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Bad News For New York City Residents

Kelly McDonald Contributor
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The New York City Council has voted to decriminalize urinating in the street, disturbing the peace, drinking alcohol out of paper bags and even skulking in public parks after dark, the New York Post reports.

The New York City Council passed the bill, called the “Criminal Justice Reform Act,” on Wednesday. Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to sign the legislation into law. The legislation states that individuals who commit such offenses as urinating on the sidewalk and drinking alcohol from paper bags should be given a civil, rather than criminal, citation.

Proponents of the law argue that it will help disadvantaged minorities avoid criminal records for minor offenses. According to Councilman Ritchie Torres (D-Bronx), young people who receive criminal records for such offenses as disturbing the peace risk losing “access to financial aid and higher education.”According to Torres, “These essential elements of a decent life. . . can be easily blighted by the lingering stigma of a criminal record.”

But not everyone is in favor of the bill.Councilman Steve Matteo (R-Staten Island), who voted against the bill, said, “We don’t want people to think it’s OK to urinate in public…We want there to be real consequences because there’s a big difference between a criminal fine and a civil fine.”

Kelly McDonald